The Emergence of Free Tours: Catalysts of Platform-Mediated Tourism Encounters

This article explores the platformisation of tourism encounters, focusing on platform-mediated free tours as emerging digital intermediaries. Despite their rapid growth, free tours face regulatory challenges and remain underdeveloped in the literature. Through literature review and systemat...

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Main Authors: Jorge Rivera Garcia, Julie Wilson, Pau Obrador
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Universitat de Barcelona 2024-12-01
Series:ARA: Revista de Investigación en Turismo
Subjects:
Online Access:https://revistes.ub.edu/index.php/ara/article/view/47538
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author Jorge Rivera Garcia
Julie Wilson
Pau Obrador
author_facet Jorge Rivera Garcia
Julie Wilson
Pau Obrador
author_sort Jorge Rivera Garcia
collection DOAJ
description This article explores the platformisation of tourism encounters, focusing on platform-mediated free tours as emerging digital intermediaries. Despite their rapid growth, free tours face regulatory challenges and remain underdeveloped in the literature. Through literature review and systematic bibliometric analysis, we examine key concepts shaping this innovation in tourism platforms. Recent publications, mainly by European scholars, feature case studies of European cities in geography and hospitality/tourism journals. Content analysis reveals four thematic categories: economic, geographical-spatial, legal, and social. However, a coherent research agenda is lacking. We propose theoretical and empirical questions to guide future research, advocating for a conceptual framework integrating the platform economy, tourism experiences, and the encounter itself. This framework contributes to understanding tourism encounters within the context of free tours, emphasizing the theoretical intersection of these concepts..
format Article
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institution Kabale University
issn 2014-4458
language English
publishDate 2024-12-01
publisher Universitat de Barcelona
record_format Article
series ARA: Revista de Investigación en Turismo
spelling doaj-art-2481300150ae4f6b89f19c19a2e5e06e2024-12-19T11:59:32ZengUniversitat de BarcelonaARA: Revista de Investigación en Turismo2014-44582024-12-0114110.1344/ara.v14i1.47538The Emergence of Free Tours: Catalysts of Platform-Mediated Tourism EncountersJorge Rivera Garcia0Julie Wilson1Pau Obrador2Universitat Oberta de Catalunya | UOC · Faculty of Economics and Business StudiesUniversitat Oberta de Catalunya | UOC · Faculty of Economics and Business StudiesNorthumbria University: Newcastle upon Tyne This article explores the platformisation of tourism encounters, focusing on platform-mediated free tours as emerging digital intermediaries. Despite their rapid growth, free tours face regulatory challenges and remain underdeveloped in the literature. Through literature review and systematic bibliometric analysis, we examine key concepts shaping this innovation in tourism platforms. Recent publications, mainly by European scholars, feature case studies of European cities in geography and hospitality/tourism journals. Content analysis reveals four thematic categories: economic, geographical-spatial, legal, and social. However, a coherent research agenda is lacking. We propose theoretical and empirical questions to guide future research, advocating for a conceptual framework integrating the platform economy, tourism experiences, and the encounter itself. This framework contributes to understanding tourism encounters within the context of free tours, emphasizing the theoretical intersection of these concepts.. https://revistes.ub.edu/index.php/ara/article/view/47538free toursplatform-mediated free tourplatform economybibliometric analysistourism encounter
spellingShingle Jorge Rivera Garcia
Julie Wilson
Pau Obrador
The Emergence of Free Tours: Catalysts of Platform-Mediated Tourism Encounters
ARA: Revista de Investigación en Turismo
free tours
platform-mediated free tour
platform economy
bibliometric analysis
tourism encounter
title The Emergence of Free Tours: Catalysts of Platform-Mediated Tourism Encounters
title_full The Emergence of Free Tours: Catalysts of Platform-Mediated Tourism Encounters
title_fullStr The Emergence of Free Tours: Catalysts of Platform-Mediated Tourism Encounters
title_full_unstemmed The Emergence of Free Tours: Catalysts of Platform-Mediated Tourism Encounters
title_short The Emergence of Free Tours: Catalysts of Platform-Mediated Tourism Encounters
title_sort emergence of free tours catalysts of platform mediated tourism encounters
topic free tours
platform-mediated free tour
platform economy
bibliometric analysis
tourism encounter
url https://revistes.ub.edu/index.php/ara/article/view/47538
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